Differential drive turbine type fluid coupling



April 17, 1951 z. YANcHo ETAL 2,549,557

DIFFERENTIAL DRIVE TURBINE TYPE FLUID COUPLING Filed Jan. 18, 1945 ZOL To/v YYAM/CHO, @HN/Ez, YQ/VCHO Patented Apr. 17, -1951V l'UNITED Vsrlx'rs ,PATENT OFFICE DIFFERENTIAL DRIVE TURBINE TYPE FLUID COUPLING 'ZoltonYanclio and Daniel Yancho, Essex, Md. yApplicationA January 18, 1946, Serial No. `641,933

will avoid one or more of the disadvantages andr limitations of the prior art.V

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved differential mechanism, that will operate as a fluid drive.

An additional object of the invention to be described is to'provide a new and improved differential mechanism that will operate as a fluid Y drive having the driving and driven parts connected thereto and providing for adjustment of the parts to unequal stresses and speeds that may be induced therein.

Other objects will become apparent as the invention is more fully set forth.

For a better understanding of the invention reference is made to the appended drawing and the following description, which detail the features of a form of this invention by Way of example, while the scope of the invention is particularly pointed out in the claim.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a plan view showing an automobile, embodying this invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view through ential;

Figure 3 is a sectiona1 view taken along line 3--3 of Figure 2, and

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4--4 of Figure 2.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the drawing.

In the structure indicated, a differential housing I is provided with openingsll, I2 and I3 which respectively receive a wheel shaft I4, another wheel shaft I5 and a propelling or power shaft I6. The wheel shaft I4 inserts and keys into an end dish-pan vaned runner I'I in the housing that'is designed for its rotation therein. Likewise the wheel shaft I5 is inserted and keyed in a second end dish-pan runner I8. This runner is vaned also.

The Shaft I 6 carries a miter gear I9 whose teeth engage the teeth of a Aring gear 20. This ring gear is mounted on the external peripheral surface of a dual dishpan impeller havthe diler- 1 Claim. (Cl. 60-54) ing itsinternal vanes 2| and v22directed towards the `internal vanes 23 and 24 respectively of the runners Il and I8.l All impellersusedeare pref` erably provided with flanges 25 that serve to facilitate their alignment and operation. The wheel runners I'I and I8 are formed with lateral and central hubs 21 'and 28, through which the shafts I4 andY I5 respectively project and terminate adjacent each other in the middle of the hub 29 formed in the impeller 30 and press against a ball bearing-3| held in the hub 29. The shafts serve to support the runners in their respective places in the housing.- The runners are set in predetermined positions .and are not intended to move from these positions, except during assembling and dismantling. The run.A

. The housing is preferably made in two bellshaped halves held together by bolts 33. The external contour of the impeller conforms in general to that of the housing halves. The housing is provided with plugs 34 and the impeller has plugs 31 for use in filling them with fluids or for draining them.

In the operation of the differential the plug 31 is removed and transmission fluid 32 is placed in the impeller housing 30 and oil is placed in the housing I0. The power shaft I6 rotates the gear I9, the ring gear 20 and the dual impeller 30. The uid pressure is equalized on both sides of the dual impeller through a hole 38 which connects both compartments and allows the fluid to engage the vanes 23 and 24 respectively causing the end runners Il and I8 to follow. slippage between the runners and the impeller depends on the type of fluid used and the speed of operation. It can be made ecient and reliable if the' transmission fluid is properly selected. The vanes of the runners are radially disposed with respect to the axis of the shafts with which they are associated and they protrude inwardly of the runner shells into the transmission fluid to form a series of pockets between adjacent vanes. The fluid drive advantages are just as apparent for the differential as they are for the transmission elements of a motor vehicle which this device has eliminated in several instances. In addition it does away with the clashing and wearing of rear gearing that rigidly takes up the stresses and loads put on it and which frequently causes the gear teeth to break thus putting the diierential out of operation. This arrangement takes up stresses placed upon it with a cushioning effect that avoids any excessive strains. It reduces many repairs that are usually routine with other types of differentials, and this in turn avoids the considerable expense that diierential construction involves. If the conventional differential is so assembled that the gears are not accurately meshed by very skilled mechanics, the chances of quick Wear and broken teeth are. considerably increased. With the type of differential described herein, extremely accurate adjustment of the impeller to the runners is ynot essential, as it will operate eiectively within considerable limits.

While but one general form of the invention is shown in the drawing and described in the specifications, it is not desired to limit this ap-Y plication for patent to this particular form or in any other way otherwise than limited by the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention what isv claimed is:

In a diierential drive fluid coupling, a casing, said casing comprising a medial impeller having a single Wall provided with external radially disposed vanes and complementary arcuate casing portions secured to said impeller to form liquid chambers between said impeller and said casing portions, a pair of co-axial runner shafts extending freely through said casing, said shafts a frictionless bearing between said ends, a pair of runners, each of which is housed in each casing portion, said runners having vanes cooperating with the vanes of said impeller, and each of said runners being keyed to its respective shaft, passage means through the Wall of said impeller placing the chambers on either side thereof in communication, a housing surrounding and spaced from said casing and having bearing portions for said shafts, a circular crown peripherally carried by said casing, a ring gear carried thereby, means for driving said ring gear carried by the housing, additional passage means through the wall oi the impeller to place the space betweenV the housing and casing and the liquid chambers incommurlication, and plugs for blocking these passages and the passages in the housing to provide access to these plugs.

ZOLTON YANCHO. DANIEL YANCHO.

EEEERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,613,154 Bauer et al. Jan. 4, 1927 1,888,881 Murphy Nov. 22, 1,932 2,096,070 Sinclair Oct. 19, 193,7 2,240,270 Schaefer Apr. 29, 1941 2,250,885 Batten July 29., 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 285,970 Great .Britain -,qw Feb.- 23, V1928 

